Bedtime Stories
by nibblesfan
Summary: Six years after the fire at the Opera Populaire, Christine tells her young daughter, Charlotte, the story of her relationship with the Phantom of the Opera and that fateful night through a fairy tale. She tells the story of a young maiden who is pursued by two princes, one white, and one dark, and the maiden's choice that would lead to her happily ever after. One-Shot


_Hello everybody! This a random fluffy one shot that I've been tossing around in my head for a while. I know it's maybe not the greatest, but that's what happens when you try to crank out a full story in one night, even if it is only a one shot. Just so you know, it takes place about six years after the end of the musical. I hope you like it. Read and review!_

_~nibblesfan_

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"Charlotte, darling, it's time for bed," Christine said gently, before taking her five year old daughter's hand and leading the little girl to her bedroom. "Come, I'll tuck you in."

"Yes Mama," she replied. After changing into her nightgown, Charlotte turned to her mother. "Mama, will you tell me a bedtime story?"

Christine nodded. "Which one would you like to hear?"

"Tell me the one with the princes! It's my favorite!"

"Oui, ma chérie." She tucked her daughter in snugly and handed Charlotte her favorite doll before beginning.

"Once upon a time in a faraway land, there lived a beautiful maiden. She lived all alone in a cottage in the woods. Whenever she got lonely, she would go out into the forest and sing for all the forest animals, and it would make her feel better."

"One day, a dark prince was riding by when he heard the maiden singing. The prince had never heard anything more beautiful in his entire life; to him, she sounded like an angel. But he was afraid to speak to her. Nobody liked him because he was different than everyone else. So instead of revealing himself to her, the dark prince hid in the woods and spoke to her."

"He told the maiden how wonderful she was at singing and told her that she was beautiful. But when she asked who was there, he was too afraid to reveal himself to her. Instead of telling her the truth, the prince said that he was a spirit of the forest. Because she couldn't find the prince's hiding place, she believed him."

"Every day, the prince would visit the maiden and she would sing for him. He fell deeper and deeper in love with the maiden. He was afraid to tell her though, because everyone was afraid of him, and he didn't want to frighten the maiden. So he continued to visit, but stayed hidden in the forest, watching and admiring her from afar."

"A white prince from a neighboring country was riding by after one of the dark prince's visits. He heard the maiden singing in the forest, and rushed to find her. When he reached the cottage, he was surprised by what he found. The white prince knew the maiden from long ago. When they were children, the maiden lost her scarf in the sea, but the white prince went and fetched it for her. She remembered his kindness and he remembered her beauty."

"The dark prince could tell that the white prince was in love with the maiden too, and he became jealous. That night, after the white prince left, he left his hiding place in the forest and revealed himself to the maiden. He wanted to take her to his palace, but she was so shocked that he wasn't a forest spirit, she fainted. The dark prince was saddened, but he took her into her cottage where she would be safe."

"In the morning, the white prince returned to visit the maiden. She tried to tell him about the dark prince, but he wouldn't listen. Instead, the white prince asked the maiden to marry him. She agreed and they decided that the prince would take her to castle the next day so they could be married."

"When the dark prince found out, he was furious. He was so jealous of the white prince that that night, he went back to her cottage. When the maiden was fast asleep in her bed, he slipped inside and took her. When the maiden awoke, she was in the middle of the forest on a horse with the dark prince."

"The dark prince brought her to his castle and begged her to marry him. When she refused, he locked her inside a chamber until she agreed. The maiden was so frightened. What had happened to the kind forest spirit that she would sing to everyday?

"Meanwhile, the white prince had arrived at the maiden's cottage, planning on taking her to his kingdom. However, he found her missing. He realized that her stories about the forest spirit being the dark prince were true. He jumped on his horse to go rescue her from the dark prince."

"Back at the dark prince's castle, he was pleading with the maiden to marry him. She refused again and again, desperately hoping that the white prince would rescue her. But when the white prince arrived at the castle, the guards captured him and locked him away in the dungeons. The dark prince took the maiden down to the dungeons and gave her a choice. Either she could marry him and the white prince would go free, or she could go free and the white prince would be locked in the dungeon forever."

"The maiden was torn on what to do. She didn't want to marry the dark prince, but she couldn't leave the white prince in the dungeon either. Finally she made her decision. She wouldn't let the man she loved spend the rest of his life locked away, so the maiden agreed to marry the dark prince. The white prince begged her to change her mind, to leave him behind, but she had made her decision."

"To prove to the dark prince that she would keep her word, the maiden kissed him. He had never been shown any affection ever in his life. Because the maiden had given him the small kindness, the dark prince decided to release both the white prince and the maiden. Before the dark prince could change his mind, the white prince and the maiden quickly fled the castle. The white prince brought the maiden to his horse and the two fled into the night."

Christine looked up at the sound of footsteps, and smiled at her husband who was standing in the doorway, watching her and Charlotte. He returned the smile and waited silently for Christine to finish her story. "What happened next, Mama?" Charlotte asked.

"As they passed through the castle walls, the maiden looked back. She could see the dark prince staring at her from a window. Instantly, she felt sad. The prince hadn't hurt her. He was just lonely. The white prince could marry any princess in the world that he wanted, but no one would ever want to marry the dark prince."

"'Take me back,' the maiden said suddenly. The white prince was confused. He didn't understand why the maiden wanted to return to the man who had taken her. She couldn't explain why, but she needed to go back to the dark prince. The white prince refused, so she jumped from the back of the horse and walked through the forest all the way back to the castle."

"Meanwhile, back at the castle, the dark prince was watching the forest, longing for the beautiful maiden. He was shocked to see her emerge from the dark forest. The dark prince rushed out of the castle to meet her. 'What are you doing here?' he asked in surprise."

"'I couldn't leave you,' the maiden replied."

"Then what happened?" Charlotte asked, bouncing up and down on the bed. "What happened next, Mama?"

Christine smiled. "I think you know, darling."

"They got married and lived happily ever after!"

"Oui, ma chérie, they got married and lived happily ever after." She looked up to her husband. "Isn't that right?"

Erik smiled as he walked into the room and sat down on the bed beside Christine. "That's absolutely right. Now, Charlotte, I believe it's time for you to go to sleep." He tucked his young daughter in and pressed a kiss to her forehead. "Bonne nuit mon ange."

"Bonne nuit, Papa," Charlotte replied, hugging her father and then her mother. "Bonne nuit Mama."

The couple walked out of the room, hand in hand. "Do you ever regret your decision?" Erik asked softly.

"What decision?"

"Me over Raoul. He could have given you a life I never could."

Christine stared at him for a moment. How could he have asked such a question? "No. Never. Erik, I may not have known it at first, but you have always held my heart in your hands. The only thing I regret is not realizing my feelings for you sooner."

Erik leaned in and gave her a long, slow kiss "I love you so much, Christine."

She gave him a playful smile in return. "I love you too, my dark prince."


End file.
